Summit County Police Blotter: Late-night party ends with early morning crash

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At 7:45 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 17, Summit County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a single car crash in the overflow parking lot of Tenderfoot employee housing in Keystone.

The call originated as a Report Every Drunk Driver Immediately report and once on scene deputies observed a green Subaru Outback in an embankment between the parking lot and U.S. Highway 6.

According to witness statements, the Subaru, driven by a 21-year-old woman, came squealing sideways around a corner from Tenderfoot housing and blew through a stop sign at Lone Pine Circle and Firehouse Drive. The driver then entered the overflow parking area and drove in circles several times before crashing into the embankment.

During an interview with law enforcement, the woman admitted to having as many as “six hard alcoholic drinks” the night before, according to police reports. Officers noticed two bottles of Evan Williams whiskey in the woman’s car.

Sensing the woman’s erratic driving was caused by more than a hangover, deputies asked the woman to conduct voluntary roadside maneuvers, which she did not perform to the officer’s satisfaction.

The woman was arrested on suspicion of DUI and prior to booking at the Summit County Jail she agreed to submit to a chemical blood test. The woman also underwent a Breathalyzer test. That test returned a blood-alcohol content of .161.

The woman was booked into Summit County Jail on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol, driving a vehicle with excessive alcohol content and reckless driving.

Unknown identity

Just before 7 a.m. on Monday, Sept. 23, Summit County Sheriff’s Office deputies were dispatched to the eastbound lane of Interstate 70 at milepost 205 near Silverthorne to direct traffic off of the highway due to a weather-related crash.

While at the scene deputies observed a blue Chevrolet Tahoe begin to exit I-70 as directed. At the last moment the driver merged back onto the highway and continued traveling eastbound past the accident, according to police records.

A Sheriff’s Office deputy returned to his cruiser and pursued the Tahoe. After conducting a traffic stop, the deputy asked the driver, a 26-year-old man with a South Carolina I.D., why he didn’t exit the highway as directed. The man responded that he didn’t understand what was going on, so he just stayed on the highway, according to reports.

Deputies ran the driver’s last name and pin number through their mobile data computer. The database returned no known records of the man under his last name, and the pin number on his I.D. was tied to an unrelated South Carolina woman, reports stated.

Deputies placed the man into custody on suspicion of forgery of a government-issued document. While at Summit County Jail the man was finger printed. Deputies then sent the man’s prints to the Colorado Bureau of Investigations and the Federal Bureau of Investigations to determine his real identity and to research any prior criminal history. Records indicated the man did not have any prior arrests or outstanding warrants.

Regardless, the man was booked into Summit County Jail on suspicion of failure to obey a traffic signal, possession of a forged instrument, forgery of a government-issued document and false reporting to authorities.

According to witness statements, the Subaru, driven by a 21-year-old woman, came squealing sideways around a corner from Tenderfoot housing and blew through a stop sign at Lone Pine Circle and Firehouse Drive. The driver then entered the overflow parking area and drove in circles several times before crashing into the embankment.